No waste Healing Chicken Soup

No waste Healing Chicken Soup

  • Whole Chicken
  • 4
  • 40 minutes
  • Easy
One of our favourite things about roasting a chicken has to be the wonderful bonus of producing nourishing bone broth - which is the result of boiling the carcasses and left-over bones and skin with any left-over vegetable peelings. However, if you don't have any peelings left, just simple bones and water, simmered slowly for a good 12-24 hours produces a beautiful rich nutrient-dense, collagen-rich liquid. It's prized for its high protein content, rich flavor, and potential health benefits, including supporting gut health, strengthening joints, and improving hair, skin, and nails.  Combine this, with nutrient rich immune boosting vegetables and you’re really on a winner with this wonderful soup. It’s also a great way of using up any left over chicken. We’ve added a good helping of Freekeh to this delicious soup... Freekeh is a nutritious, nutty, and smoky-flavored grain made from young, green durum wheat that is roasted, dried, and rubbed. A staple in Middle Eastern and North African cuisine, this ancient grain is high in protein and fibre, often used in soups, as an alternative to rice.

Ingredients

  • 1 pint of chicken broth
  • 1 pint of water (more if you like more liquid)
  • 200g ready Cooked Chicken (or whatever weight leftover you wish to add)
  • 2 carrots, chopped fine
  • 1 onion, chopped fine
  • 1 leek, chopped fine
  • 1/2 fennel bulb, chopped fine
  • 4 garlic cloves, crushed
  • Thumb sized piece of ginger, grated
  • 1 lemon zested, cut the remaining lemon into slices
  • 2 large handfuls of chopped chard
  • 1 tablespoon Fresh thyme
  • 1 tablespoon Fresh parsley
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric
  • Pinch of Salt & Black pepper
  • 200g Freekeh

Method

  1. In a large pan heat a tablespoon of oil and gently cook the onion, fennel, leek and carrot until softened - approx 4 minutes. Then add the garlic and ginger and stir for a further minute.
  2. Next add the bone broth, turmeric, lemon zest and Freekeh to the mix and gently bring to a heat. Reduce the temperature and gently let it simmer for around 20 minutes until the Freekeh are soft and cooked.
  3. Back to the soup - add all of the remaining ingredients, except the lemon wedges to the pan and bring back to a boil. Season to taste.
  4. Serve with a good squeeze of lemon juice from the reserved wedges.

Enjoy x

Recipe courtesy of @stephs_food_diaryÂ